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AUGUST
2010 CAST |
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BONE FISHHOOK BONE FISHHOOK
This bone fishhook was found
several years ago in a cultivated field on the Cahokia Mounds Historic
site. It was found in a cache of six or seven other fishhooks. This
fishhook appears to be made from deer bone and possibly the toe bone of
a deer.
An estimated date for this fishhook is somewhere between A.D. 900 to
A.D. 1300.
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AUGUST
2010 CAST |
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MOUND 72
POINT This point represents another one of the many different types of arrow points that were found during the excavation of mound 72. It was found in one of three caches that all together contained about 1200 projectile points. Only two points in Mound 72 were similar to this example. It was discovered within a large cache that contained several different styles of points. All the points in this cache were laying parallel to each other and generally facing one direction suggesting they were once hafted onto arrow shafts. This wide corner-notched point represents one of the artistic styles that are unique to Mound 72. The barbs are rounded and the blade edges are slightly recurved. This style may have been influenced by some of the Caddoan arrow point types from Arkansas and Oklahoma. This point is made of white Burlington chert and it measures 1 3/16 inches (3.1 cm) long.
Approximately
seventeen different styles of arrow points were found in mound 72. They
vary
from simple unnotched triangular points to some that were both serrated
and notched with recurved blade edges. They were also made from many
different types of chert such as silicified sandstone, Burlington,
Dover, Kaolin and Pitkin cherts.
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JULY
2010 CAST |
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FLUTED
POINT
This fluted point was
surface collected many years ago by a farmer on a site that is believed to be somewhere
in Franklin County, in southwestern Vermont. It was previously reported by
Stephen Loring in an article called "Paleo-Indian Hunters And The Champlain
Sea: A Presumed Association." This point is most important for the material
it was made from. Stephen Loring (Smithsonian) originally identified the material as Cheshire
quartzite which is a material that is found in north central Vermont. But in
his more
recent analysis of the point he was able to identified the material as Ramah chert
from Labrador. The analysis was done with the use of lab equipment such as
laser spectrograph or x-ray diffraction. This would mean that the source is
considerably further away than first thought. In fact, this distance rivals
many Early Paleo
transports. A straight line from the find area to the known Ramah quarry
along the Labrador coastline at Ramah Bay measures approximately 1,100 miles
but a more probable circuitous route might be closer to 1,600 miles. It's
believed that this point is fairly early and dates to at least 10,000 years
ago or more.
CLICK ON PICTURE FOR LARGER IMAGE This picture shows three views of the original fluted point before the one ear was restored.
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JUNE
2010 CAST |
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CLOVIS PREFORM
This broken base of a fluted preform was recovered from the lower Clovis
horizon at Kimmswick. It was broken when a large end thinning flake was
struck from the base and hinged downward. This broken preform represents
one of the common types of break patterns found on Clovis sites. This
preform was made from a piece of white Burlington (Crescent Quarry)
chert and it measures 1 9/16 inches long.
This Clovis site, once referred to as just "Kimmswick", has had
a long history of excavation. Beginning in 1839 Dr. Albert Koch unearthed
skeletal remains which were later identified as Mammut americanum
and later sold to the British Museum of Natural History in 1844 where they
are still on display. In 1897 C.W. Beehler rediscovered the site with new
excavations and later built a small on site museum in 1900, which housed
hundreds of bones. Several excavations followed Beehler but the most
extensive were those of Robert McCormick Adams in the 1940’s who left
the most complete record of the site.
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MAY
2010 CAST |
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SIDE-NOTCHED POINT This Anasazi side-notched arrow point dates to the Pueblo III Period between A.D. 1100 and A.D. 1300. It was discovered during excavation of the Wallace Ruin site near Cortez, Colorado. This side-notched point was made from a beautiful piece of red Jasper and it measures 1 5/16 inches (3.3 cm) long. ANASAZI ERA by Bruce Bradley, PhD. On the Colorado Plateau of northeastern Arizona, southwestern New Mexico, southeastern Utah and southwestern Colorado the Archaic was followed by a culture termed the Anasazi. This was a generalized village dwelling group which relied primarily on the cultivation of corn, beans and squash. Hunting did remain as part of the food gathering process throughout the Anasazi era. There is growing evidence that warfare may also have played a small role in Anasazi society. The Anasazi era has been separated into two major divisions: (1) the Basketmaker, and (2) the Pueblo. Each of these is further subdivided into social organizations. The Anasazi era is usually considered to fall between A.D. 1 and A.D. 1300. This time was followed by further development of a pueblo dwelling culture which is still existing today in New Mexico and Arizona. |
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APRIL
2010 CAST |
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CLOVIS POINT This large Clovis point was discovered in April, 1988 during the excavation of the East Wenatchee Clovis site. The site is located in central Washington in Douglas County. It was found laying next to three other large fluted Clovis points at the edge of an ancient pit that contained more than 60 stone and bone Clovis culture artifacts. It's believed that this Clovis point has been resharpened one or more times. This point is made of a very pure, translucent clear to white agate that may have been quarried from outcrops among Columbia River basalts east of the archaeological site. It measures 5 5/8 inches (22 cm) long, 2 9/16 inches (6.6 cm) wide and 1/2 inch (1.2 cm) thick.
EAST
WENATCHEE CLOVIS SITE One of the most spectacular archaeological discoveries ever made in the study of Early Paleo bone and stone artifacts occurred near East Wenatchee, Washington in 1987. The site is located in an apple orchard near the Columbia River in central Washington. The initial find was made by workers who were digging a ditch for an irrigation pipe line. |
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MARCH
2010 CAST |
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SCOTTSBLUFF
POINT
SCOTTSBLUFF
POINT
This projectile point was
discovered sometime during the 1977-78, 1980, 1983 & 1984 excavations of the
Horner II site by the University of Wyoming. Earlier excavations of the
Horner site (Horner I) was carried out by Princeton University in 1949 &
1950 and by the Smithsonian Institution in 1952. This point is described as
falling typologically and technologically between the Alberta and
Scottsbluff / Eden points but is considered to be a Scottsbluff style. It
represents one of 21 projectile points found during the University of
Wyoming excavations and only one of five complete un-reworked points. This
point is made of dark red Porcellanite and measures slightly over 2 7/8
inches (7.4 cm) long and 1 inch (2.5 cm) wide. HORNER SITE The Horner site was discovered by Jimmy Allen on July 2, 1939 while he “walked down the (Shoshone) River to Sage Creek, hunting arrowheads.” The site was later recognized as the representative type site of the Cody Cultural Complex. The site was named after Pear Horner, the owner of the land. The Horner site is located in northwestern Wyoming in Park County 4 miles northeast of the town of Cody. The site is also situated on a 150 foot terrace near the confluence of Sage Creek and the Shoshone River. |
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JANUARY
2010 CAST |
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MOUND 72
POINT This arrow point was found during the excavation of mound 72 in one of three caches that all together contained about 1200 projectile points. There were only about thirteen points in Mound 72 that were similar to this example. It was discovered within a much larger cache that contained several different styles of points. All the points in this cache were laying parallel to each other and generally facing one direction suggesting they were once hafted onto arrow shafts. This point represents one of the artistic styles that are unique to Mound 72. It's corner notched like both the Agee and Agee A type points, it also has recurved blade edges that are similar to some Agee points and it has the straight base like Agee A points. The style of this Mound 72 point seems to be influenced by Caddoan arrow point styles from the Arkansas and Oklahoma areas located southwest of the Cahokia Mounds site. This point is made of white Burlington chert and it measures 1 38 inches (3.5 cm) long
Approximately
seventeen different styles of arrow points were found in mound 72. They
vary
from simple unnotched triangular points to some that were both serrated
and notched with recurved blade edges. They were also made from many
different types of chert such as silicified sandstone, Burlington,
Dover, Kaolin and Pitkin cherts.
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DECEMBER
2009 CAST |
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LATE STAGE BIFACE
LATE STAGE CLOVIS BIFACE
This is the largest biface in the McKinnis cache and the best
representation of a recognizable Clovis shaped artifact in the
cache. The lanceolate
shape and "classic" Clovis flaking pattern suggests that this is a late stage preform
for a Clovis point. It was made with edge-to-edge percussion
flaking. Several large percussion flakes extend nearly across one edge to the opposite edge. A large thinning flake was also
struck from the base. This late stage preform was made of Burlington
chert and it measures 5 5/8 inches (14.3 cm) long, 2 1/8 inches (5.3
cm) wide and 9/16 inch (1.4 cm) thick. THE McKINNIS CACHE SITE In 1996 a cache of 11 bifaces and 12 core blades were discovered on land that was being leveled for houses. The site is located on a hill top and within 2 miles of the Missouri River in St. Louis County, Missouri. This cache was made with stone tool manufacturing technology that relates to the Clovis culture. The largest artifact in the cache is a basally thinned late stage Clovis point preform. A base of a Clovis point was also found near this cache.
This picture shows three views of the original McKinnis cache biface. |
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NOVEMBER
2009 CAST |
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BIFACE
This early stage biface is one of 11 bifaces (see
McKinnis cache) discovered during a land leveling operation in St.
Louis County, Missouri. It's an early stage biface that illustrates
"classic" Clovis flake removal technique. Large percussion flakes have
been removed from several different directions. It has been demonstrated
that a rocker-punch technique or indirect style of flaking may be the
way Clovis people were making these small and the very large platter
biface cores. Clovis biface reduction was achieved by removing large
edge-to-edge percussion flakes from sides, corners and ends. This is a
lithic technology that was no longer in use in post-Clovis cultures. The intended purpose for this early stage
preform was probably to make a fluted point. This biface is made of
Burlington chert and measures 4 3/4 inches (12 cm) long, 2 5/8
inches (6.7 cm) wide and 3/4 inch (1.9 cm) thick. THE McKINNIS CACHE SITE In 1996 a cache of 11 bifaces and 12 core blades were discovered on land that was being leveled for houses. The site is located on a hill top and within 2 miles of the Missouri River in St. Louis County, Missouri. This cache was made with stone tool manufacturing technology that relates to the Clovis culture. The largest artifact in the cache is a basally thinned late stage Clovis point preform. A base of a Clovis point was also found near this cache.
This picture shows three views of the original McKinnis cache biface. |
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OCTOBER
2009 CAST |
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MESA SITE
POINT
MESA SITE
POINT This projectile point was discovered during the excavation of the Mesa site in northern Alaska above the Arctic Circle. Of the 154 complete and fragmentary points that were found this is one of the best examples. It appears that it may never have been resharpened. Mesa site points are "lanceolate in outline, with parallel flakes perpendicular to the long axes of the point, which results in a ridge down the centerline of the point, creating a lenticular to diamond-shaped cross-section. (Kunz, 2003: 28)" They most closely resemble Agate Basin points. This point is made of a very slightly translucent grayish/green chert and it measures 7 7/16 inches (6.2 cm) long. THE MESA SITE
The Mesa site was discovered in 1978 by Bureau of
Land Management archaeologist Michael Kunz in the northern foothills of Alaska's
Brooks Range above the Arctic Circle. The site was tested in 1979 and 1980. Full
scale summer excavations began in 1991 and continued through 1999. Several years of excavations eventually
produced 51 carbon dates that range from 11,700 to 9,700 years before present.
The best estimated core record of time for the Paleo feature of this
site seems to be somewhere between 10,400 and 9,800 years ago.
The Mesa site is recognized as the first well-documented Paleo-Indian site to be
found in the North American Arctic. |
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SEPTEMBER
2009 CAST |
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GOSHEN
POINT
This Goshen point is described
by Frison and Bradley as a point that, "conforms in shape to the general
description of Goshen points." The hafting area edges on this point
(proximal edges) are straight but expand slightly towards the point (distal
portion). Pressure flaking on both sides was selective with a wide range of
flake scar widths. Pressure flakes on the base are not large enough to be
considered basal thinning. The material is not identified. This point
measures 2 1/2 inches (6.3 cm) long. MILL IRON SITE
The Mill iron site is
located in Carter County, Montana in the southeastern part of the state.
It's now believed that it represents the Goshen Cultural Complex as it was
described at the Hell Gap site in southeastern Wyoming. There are now five
accelerator dates on the site that average over 11,000 years before present.
It remains to be proven if Goshen is a Clovis variant or if it should be
placed somewhere between Clovis and Folsom.
Picture of opposite side of point illustrated above, showing random flaking. |
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AUGUST
2009 CAST |
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GOSHEN
POINT
This Goshen point was
discovered in the bison bone bed during the excavation of the Mill Iron
site. It's atypical in form
because it has a base that is almost straight, It has only the slightest
indentation.
This point is
described by Frison & Bradley as being, "in some ways, an extraordinary
point." They believe that it was probably made from the mid-section of what
would have been the largest point in the assemblage. They also describe it
as being flat lens shaped in cross-section. Pressure flaking scars are
shallow and difficult to distinguish from one another on one side and
slightly more distinct on the other. The edges in the hafting area, on the
base and sides, are steeply retouched with pressure flaking and heavily
ground. This has the effect of making it almost look stemmed. The material
was not identified. It measures 2 3/16 inches (5.5 cm) long. MILL IRON SITE
The Mill iron site is
located in Carter County, Montana in the southeastern part of the state.
It's now believed that it represents the Goshen Cultural Complex as it was
described at the Hell Gap site in southeastern Wyoming. There are now five
accelerator dates on the site that average over 11,000 years before present.
It remains to be proven if Goshen is a Clovis variant or if it should be
placed somewhere between Clovis and Folsom.
Picture of opposite side of point illustrated above, showing random flaking. |
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JULY 2009
CAST |
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CLOVIS
POINT
This Clovis point was found in 1962 by heavy equipment operator Donald
Colby. He found the point during reservoir construction. The Colby site
was later named after Donald Colby, the discoverer of the site. This is
the largest complete example. A total of four Clovis points were found
on the site. All of the Colby Clovis points have rounded bases. THE COLBY SITE
The Colby site is located on private property in north central Wyoming in the Bighorn Basin.
This important site was named after Donald Colby who discovered the first
Clovis spear point there in 1962. Mr. Colby found it while using heavy
earth moving equipment during the construction of a reservoir. The Colby site was first recognized
as an important archaeological site when the first scientific
excavations began to take place there in 1973. Most of the site was eventually
excavated during five separate digging seasons between the
years 1973 through 1978. |
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JUNE 2009
CAST |
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STEMMED POINT This arrow point was found on the Auvernier site in Lake Neuchatel in western Switzerland. The Auvernier site is a lake dwelling site that dates approximately from 4,000 BC to 500 BC. This stemmed point dates sometime between the Middle Neolithic period to the Early Bronze Age. Stemmed arrow points are found on Stone Age sites in many areas of the world. They represent one of the more common forms of projectile points. Ferdinand Keller illustrated three different shapes of arrow points in his book on Swiss “Lake Dwellings,” and refers to this style as "the most artistic of all." Some examples of stone arrow points were found still attached to a shaft with pitch and “thread.” This point is made from good quality chert and it measures 1 5/16 inches (3.3 cm) long.
This picture shows three views of the original stemmed arrow point from the Auvernier site in western Switzerland. |
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